It's Your Move
by awkwardshipper
Summary: Regina, a junior in college, has always prided herself in setting boundaries and setting limits. She follows a certain path for her life that is until she mets Emma Nolan. The mysterious daughter of professors Mr. and Mrs. Nolan who returns to finish her college years at UC Berkeley. The irritating, idiotic, but warm spirited woman manages to weasel her way into Regina's life.
1. Chapter 1

"I really think you should expand your horizon. After all it is college." A perky blonde sipped on a diet coke, people watching while simultaneously offering advice to her best friend.

In response, her best friend rolled her eyes as she was putting her hair in a ponytail. The California heat was too much for her long, thick black hair to be clinging onto her neck. "Expanding my horizon means taking cultural and language immersion trips, not watching a 6'5 giant, chug gallons of beer before he passes out." She scoped the small café, searching for their waitress, desperately needing another cup of coffee.

"But its college!" The blonde had no other defense for forcing her best friend into tagging along to a fraternity party. It had been over two years, since they had arrived on campus and the only party the other girl ever attended was department mixers.

"Eliz, I'm here to learn and possibly become a very influential person, and that does not involve ridiculous parties."

"Regina, please! Just for an hour then we can leave. Your social life should not consist of drinking wine with faculty. It's not healthy; you should be hanging out with people that are not on a tenure." Elizabeth frowned when she realized she had slurped the last drop of her diet coke and allowed her eyes to roam for the waitress.

"Can we please drop this conversation? I would like to have an adult conversation before babysitting for the Nolans tonight." Regina tapped her nails against the table, becoming slightly more agitated by the second. All her body craved was a double shot of espresso with milk but their server was nowhere to be found. If it weren't for their prize-winning coffee, Regina would have longed forgotten about this little café. It always took over twenty minutes to be seated and an additional forty minutes before their orders arrived.

Elizabeth arched her eyebrow at Regina, not knowing her best friend to sound upset about babysitting for the Nolans. Henry Nolan, the son of Mary Margaret and David Nolan, was probably one of Regina's favourite people in the entire world and that meant something. Someone had to be an extraordinary person for Regina to even consider becoming friends with them. "Is that a bad thing? I thought you loved babysitting little Henry?"

Regina sighed and caught a glimpse of her waitress, quickly avoiding answering Elizabeth's question. She called out to the woman, drawing attention her, and smiled when she acknowledged Regina.

"I'm sorry. Have you been waiting long?" Her nametag read Ruby and Regina inwardly chuckled when she noticed the one faded red streak in Ruby's hair. She guessed it to be a statement or something and went on to place the order.

"It's fine. You've been keeping busy. A double shot of espresso with milk and another diet coke for my friend."

The waitress gave Regina a quick nod and headed towards the direction of the kitchen, leaving Elizabeth to confront her best friend. "Is something bothering you, love?"

"Just a bit stressed about midterms, is all. Nothing a good night's rest can't fix." Regina gave the blonde a half smile in attempt to justify her words. The brunette actually had more pressing matters than just midterms but she lacked the courage to come forth with what currently occupied her mind. Judging by the worried expression on Elizabeth's face, Regina knew her best friend did not buy her response. It was not the time nor place for a pouring of one's heart and crying over their drinks, so Regina shifted the conversation to partying something Elizabeth never stopped talking about.

"How long do you plan on staying out?" The brunette straightened her posture and pretended to be intrigued with whatever Elizabeth had to say.

"Why do you care? Are you going to bring a hot guy over? Or maybe that red-head babe from Spanish Lit?" Elizabeth knew Regina harbored feelings for the same gender and constantly found ways to mention it, but whenever she did, Regina would put up a defense wall ten feet tall and ten feet thick.

"She's a gin—I mean, will I have to worry about your safety or you obtaining alcohol poisoning tonight?"

"Well, if the party sucks, then I'll be back around one-ish. The latest will be around three or four." Elizabeth played with her straw, grimacing at the lip-gloss stain on the rim of it. She was tiptoeing around blatantly demanding Regina tell her the truth about her strange behavior but the blonde knew her best friend/roommate would find ways to avoid the subject. Instead, she settled on finding out about the brunette's intentions for the evening with little Henry. "What's the plan tonight? Are you going to read six of Henry's favorite books and hopes he knocks out before eight? Or do you plan on going full on sheriff mode and demand he behaves tonight?"

Regina chuckled softly, knowing that Elizabeth had heard on multiple occasions of the rendezvous; she's had with little Henry Nolan. "Hopefully, he'll be asleep before I get there. The Nolans are picking up his sister from the airport, her flight is suppose to land at ten and it's an hour drive to the airport."

"Excuse me but did you say his sister? Like the Nolans have another child who is old enough to fly on a plane? Ew, that's pretty gross." Elizabeth pretended to puke over the table and allowed Regina to explain herself.

"Apparently, this alleged sister is about our age and left for boarding school, at the age of sixteen. She's done a semester at UPENN but her parents wanted her closer to home or something like that. Anyway, she'll be here with us. From what I've gathered, Henry has never met his older sister or does not have a memory of her. But he's and I quote, 'uper excited', to meet her."

"And here I thought the Nolans were the perfect family. Goes to show you, every family has their secrets, no matter how put together they may look on the outside." Elizabeth did not bother for Regina to respond before continuing her thought. "Will you tell me all about her? It's just seems bizarre that the Nolans are old enough to procreate someone that old, ya know?"

Regina rolled her eyes and responded. "No, I don't know. And you know I'm not one for gossip. I'm sure there is nothing extraordinary about the girl. Fingers crossed, she did not catch the idiot gene from her parents."

"Well, what about Henry? He is an offspring of those so-called idiots." Elizabeth practically jumped off her seat when she saw the waitress walking towards them with their drinks.

"Yes, that may be true but I believe that gene has skipped a generation. He's only inherited their sense of hospitality and dire need to make everyone around him happy." Regina inhaled the overwhelming smell of her coffee before she indulged in what was undeniably the best taste in the entire world.

* * *

><p>"Regina, thank you again for doing this on such short notice." Mary Margaret bustled around the living area, grabbing her coat whilst rummaging through her purse for her keys. "David! Do you have the keys?"<p>

Regina rolled her eyes and made way to the front door, knowing the car keys were on the floor next to Henry's rain boots. The boy probably managed to sneak way into his mother's purse and decided to leave them wherever he pleased. "I've got them Mrs. Nolan. You should head on out, it's already 8:45."

"Right. David! What's taking you so long? Please, hurry or I will leave and then what would Emma think?" Mary Margaret yelled from the foot of the stairs, glancing apologetically at Regina.

Rushing down the stairs, David Nolan, buttoned the last button on his flannel, earning sighs from both women in the room. Regina, wondered if the professor's wardrobe consisted entirely of jeans and flannel shirts because even in class, the man wore the same boring attire. David acknowledged Regina's presence with a smile and answered his wife's question. "Mary Margaret, do you honestly think Emma would consider getting into the car, if it were only you and her? I'm here and ready to leave. Let's go."

It took all of Regina's willpower not to smile after that snarky remark and she decided the best option would be to check on Henry. "Is Henry awake or slowly drifting into sleep?"

David answered while helping Mary Margaret put on her coat. It bewildered Regina why the woman needed one in first place being that is was only in the high 60s. "He's listening to Mary Poppins and waiting for you to stuck him in. He's already brushed his teeth, so you barely have any work." David patted his wife on the butt indicating he was ready to leave and scooted her out of the door, as if he was herding sheep.

"Drive carefully." Regina yelled out before the door closed. She marched upstairs and listened carefully for sounds of activity coming for Henry's room. They always enjoyed surprising the other and so far the score was Henry 3, Regina 1. She had every intention of evening the score. Quietly waiting outside his door, Regina heard the audiotape reading of Mary Poppins and knew exactly what chapter she stumbled on. It was the only chapter Henry had the patience to listen to because he enjoyed hearing about the happy ending. Opening the door ever so slowly, Regina lurked in the shadows and counted to three before shouting boo. Henry, being the opposite of discreet, covered his head with the sheets, only allowing a small portion for his eyes.

"Henry, it's me. You can come out now." Regina laughed at the frown displayed on the little boy's face. He did not seem too content that the woman begot the best of him. Henry was a sore loser and had no shame in showing it.

"You scared me! Why you do that?" Henry crawled out of bed and waddled over to his desk to turn on his lamp. Perhaps not gracefully, because he had to climb on his chair, in order to reach the switch.

"Because you've scared me, too. On multiple occasions, I should add. So, I decided to get revenge. Don't you think that's fair?" Regina removed her ankle boots and placed them against Henry's closet and sat beside him on the bed. She knew it would have been only a matter of time before he dragged her into bed with him. It was a bad habit but the brunette never had the courage to resist that adorable face of his.

"No." Henry crossed his arms and lifted his chin up. He was determined to prove Regina wrong.

"It's not fair? Why not?" Regina was prepared to hear the three year olds rationalization and reasoning.

"I win cause I'm cute."

Regina could not contain the smile playing on her face because she knew the little boy to be blunt, at certain giving moments, but never has he taken it this far. "Really? You think you're cute? And why is that, may I ask?"

A tint of redness appeared on Henry's cheeks and hid his face in his hands for several seconds before answering Regina's questions. "A lady in the store said that to mommy. She said I was cute and adore… adore…" Henry stuttered trying to pronounce the word but his lips betrayed his mind every time.

"And that gives you the right to win, young man? I still don't think that's fair. What if I said someone told me I was cute, would I qualify?" Regina knew someone else would have dropped the topic and let Henry win but this is one of the reasons babysitting him was such a joy.

Henry simple shook his head and laughed. "But you not cute, Gina." He laughed softly again before continuing, "You is pretty." Another tint of redness appeared on his chubby cheeks and Regina knew the toddler genuinely meant what he had just said. She had no doubt, Henry would continue being a perfect gentleman, as the years went on.

"Thank you, Henry. That means a lot, especially coming from my favorite guy." She kissed the top of his forehead but did not bother to wipe the lipstick off. "Enough with the compliments, its way past your bedtime. Your parents are expecting you to be in bed, before they come back." Usually, Henry would put on a fight or give Regina the biggest puppy eyes possible, but tonight he quickly got under the covers without uttering a word. Happy with that, Regina walked over to the other side and slide under the covers, as well. Henry enjoyed having the brunette's company while falling asleep and refused to sleep, if she were not lying with him. Mary Margaret claims Henry never asks for them to lie with him and it's only something he demands of his babysitter.

This does not bother Regina, in the smallest way, because the boy stole her heart from the moment they first met. He introduced himself, as the prince of the castle; the castle representing the campus, and asked Regina to be one of his knights. The boy had no second thoughts of inviting a complete stranger, to play with him, while his parents mingled with other students or professors. At the time, Regina found this alarming and thought he should be safely guarded, but now she knows Henry has a great sense of telling whether a person is 'evil or good.' Since then, she's become the Nolans one and only babysitter, who is regularly called, and thinks of Henry like a son.

"Gina?" Henry had been watching Regina's features for a minute or two and patiently waited to ask her a question that had been bothering him for a while.

"Yes, sweetie?"

"You think Emma will like me?" A small yawn escaped his lips and Regina knew sleep would come sooner for him than she expected. She parted his bangs from his eyes and responded with as much reassurance, as possible.

"I think Emma will love you. She would be foolish not to love someone as special and wonderful as you are. You guys will become best friends before you know it."

Henry simply responded with a sleepy smile and broke the space between him and the brunette, crawling on partially on top of her, before sticking his thumb into mouth and falling asleep.

* * *

><p>"Emma, you can see him in the morning, but for now just get some sleep. You've been travelling for twelve hours." Mary Margaret quietly responded to her daughter's request holding her hand preventing her from trotting up the stairs. She looked at her husband, who was carrying suitcases in the house, hoping he would back her up.<p>

David never enjoyed being caught between daughter and mother quarrel but as usual he was stuck being the mediator. It happened from a young age when Emma realized her voice could do a lot more than ask for a Barbie on Christmas. Both of his girls would turn to him for help and either one or neither would be content with his rulings. No matter how may times he has protested his dislike for being monkey in the middle, they always drag him into their mess.

"Honey," turning to Mary Margaret, "Just let her say goodnight to Henry. The boy sleeps like a rock, anyways, he won't turn until the morning," facing Emma's direction, he continued, "Go ahead and notify Regina that she can leave." David heard his wife, hum a disapproving sound, but he could deal with consequences later. For now, he was excited that his entire family, at last, was finally together.

"Thanks, Dad. I'll be back in two minutes to help with my luggage." Emma brushed past her mother and climbed the stair, knowing exactly where to find Henry. Even though, her father notified her about Henry's sleeping patterns, she still opened the door with caution. Tip-toeing in the room, Emma eyes bounced upon the most heart-warming scene. Henry's legs and arms were thrown over, whom Emma assumed to be Regina, body and his thumb slowly falling from his mouth. One of the woman's arms were draped around Henry's small back and her other hand resting gently on her chest. Henry seemed content with his current position and Emma hated to be the one to pull him away from his comfort. Leaving the door open, allowing the hallway light to enter the room, Emma walked over to the sleeping woman's side and softly tapped her shoulders.

Emma waited several seconds before trying again, but this time she rubbed her hand on the woman's shoulders. It seemed to be working because the brunette muttered incoherent words and her began to slowly flutter open. Emma patiently waited; knowing of her own constant struggle to wake up in the morning, and quietly commended the woman for waking up on the second round. With only the light from the hallway, Emma examined the woman in bed with Henry. She had soft, delicate features and a contrasting strong jawline that defined her face, her long brunette hair appeared to be teased with curls and she had some pieces in her face. Emma was tempted to brush them away but reprimanded herself. The brunette seemed to be coming to her senses and Emma back several inches back, so that she was not hovering over the bed.

"Are you awake?" Emma asked quietly not wanting to alarm the woman.

"If being awake consist of having an unbearable thirst and desire to fall back asleep, then yes, I am awake." Regina groaned when the light hit her eyes and cursed herself for allowing Henry to manipulate her without saying a word.

"I'll get you a glass of water when we head back downstairs. For going back to sleep, I'll ask my parents to drive you home or call you a cab." Emma faded off and waited for the woman to respond.

"How very kind of you. I see the Nolan charm has also rubbed off on you, as well." Regina carefully removed Henry's limp limbs from her body and she intended for every word to sound sarcastic.

Emma awkwardly chuckled and stood still with her hands in her pants pockets. "I guess that's why we were the Charmings for every Halloween costume party."

Regina scoffed, at the idea of seeing Mary Margaret, dressed as Snow White showing off her love and kindness for the world. "Why am I not surprised? But I won't need a ride home; I live a ten-minute walk from your house."

Emma watched, as Regina gracefully got out of the bed and started making her towards the blonde. She swallowed a lump forming, when she realized just how beautiful and gorgeous this person was. Regina stopped several inches from Emma and coughed to catch her attention.

"You are blocking my shoes." Regina plainly said.

Looking behind of her, Emma noticed two pairs of shoes, a small pair of converse and women's ankle boots. Moving to the side, allowing Regina access, Emma glanced over to the sleeping boy and smiled to herself. Forgetting about the other presence, Emma sat on Henry's bed and rubbed the back of two fingers along his cheeks.

Regina, noticed the how silent the room became, and after zipping her last shoe, she glanced up at Henry's sister and found her stroking the boy's cheek. If it had been any other boy, Regina would have cooed at the intimacy the other girl was showing, but instead, she felt jealousy more than anything else.

"I think I'll take that glass of water." Regina purposely said with a rigid and harsh tone.

Emma, slightly snapped out of her trance and nodded her head, as a sign she heard Regina. She removed herself from the bed and allowed Regina to leave the room, first. Normally, Emma would have noticed the hostility Regina was directing towards her, but she was too caught up in her own thoughts. Hearing once again, Regina coughing to gather her attention, Emma walked towards the door but before she closed it, she glanced over her shoulders, at Henry and smiled.

_It feels good to be home._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Did not think I'd actually continue this fic. But here's another chapter. Read and Review and tell what you guys think. **

* * *

><p>Regina opened her purse searching for the key to her dormitory and thought to give up and hope her roommate was home from her party, when she saw the glimmer of her keychain at the bottom of her purse. Jiggling the key into the lock, Regina sighed when she finally set foot into her room and able to change into her pajama bottoms and her dad's Yale sweatshirt. Elizabeth was most likely still at her party and Regina prayed she was okay and not getting herself into trouble. She pulled her computer from under her bed and started responding to emails, sent from professors, students she was tutoring or those who wanted to be tutored, but the one email she craved to see in her inbox was not there. Carefully closing her computer, Regina walked over to the mini fridge and grabbed a bottle of water and her mind started wandering.<p>

First to logical things like end of term assignment, exams and internships for the summer. But then she thought back to her evening with Henry and how he wanted Emma to like him and be his friend. He never had issues making friends but it was his first time meeting her and Henry seemed nervous. Regina had no expectations for the woman, she expected her to be a rebel child who the Nolans had no patience for and quickly shipped to boarding school. Her first encounter was not what she expected, in the less, because she sort of imagined Emma with piercings on her face, bizarre colors in her hair, wearing a too tight tank top and an extremely short shorts with fish net stockings.

Regina laughed at her wild imagination because she had come up with such a detailed image of the girl based off of many television series and trashy novels. Saying the woman was shocked when she met the real Emma would be an understatement. Emma was wearing a UPENN spirit jersey and a pair of skinny jeans with her hair pulled in a messy bun. Regina knew better than to judge a book by it's cover but from what she saw and their brief conversation, the brunette did not think the woman had a rebellious bone in her body. This, however, did not stop Regina from despising the woman. She figured the Nolans would have no need for her to babysit Henry, any longer because his big sister had arrived. Regina did not entirely blame them but she wondered if she would ever have another opportunity to see Henry and play hide and seek or make brownies with him. Emma had officially replaced the brunette as a babysitter and for that she had very strong feelings towards her. Regina removed the blonde from her mind and got into bed, sleep coming easily for her.

* * *

><p>Emma felt the need to pinch herself because she could hardly believe she was back home, after all these years. When she left for boarding school, her parents, mainly her mother made it clear that she would never see the inside of her home for a long time. It had only been three years since she left home but it felt like decades. She was grateful for the 'second chance' her parents, mainly her father, had offered her. Not seeing family or friends for three years certainly makes the heart grow fonder and desperate for a chance to return home, as the prodigal daughter. Exeter, where she finished her last two years of high school, was an experience she would never be grateful for. She hated the weird structure of the school, the hours she spent slaving over a paper only to receive a grade she did not deserve and most importantly the pretentious assholes that attended the school. Emma had been thrown into several environments and quickly fitted in, but at Exeter this was not the case.<p>

Every girl seemed to own the same article of clothing: Hunter boots, Patagonia, Lulu Lemons, Jack Rogers, those hideous green Barbour jackets and not to mention Lily Pulitzer. Her mother, urged her to buy some of these clothing online but Emma refused to let these Blair Waldorf wannabes to let her determine her style of clothing. She expressed this several times to girls on her hall, classes and in after school activities, which were the reason, she had very little female friends. She refused to think about the boys, at her school, thankful her time at the school was for a short time. When time for applying to colleges came, Emma had never thought she would be so excited to write supplements and take the SATs and ACTs. Hearing back from UPENN, by far the greatest moment of her life and graduation could not come fast enough for her. She had been doing extremely well, at UPENN, when her father asked Emma to come back home. Uneasy about seeing her parents, after three years, Emma denied the invitation. Her father sounded heartbroken, after she told him, that she quickly changed her mind. She wanted to finish her semester, before travelling home.

Emma told her best friend, Ruby, of her return, only to be greeted with a moment of silence before a shrill of high-pitched squeals. She wanted Ruby to be the one to pick her up, but her mother, insisted Emma come home directly and be with her family. Emma scoffed at the notion, wondering where this family was when she shipped off to Massachusetts. Her thoughts were quickly interrupted, when she heard the door squeaking open. She turned around to see her father, watching her with this a certain look in his eyes. Emma had seen it in many times before, but never thought she would see it again. She felt tears coming to her eyes, and shuffled over to her father and slammed herself into his body, demanding he hug her. He quickly obliged and wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head, before resting his cheek on it.

She attempted to say something but she choked on her words, due to her tears. After several more tries, Emma finally said, "I never thought we would hug again."

David sniffled and coughed trying to mask his tears. "One of the many reasons, I needed you back home. Let's never do this again. No matter what happens."

Emma pulled away, and walked back to her bed. "Knowing mom, she'll find some reason to send me back."

David shook his head in disbelief but knew part of it was true. "Have faith in her. I think you guys should catch up and talk."

"Talk about what? How she sent me to the other side of the country because I made a mistake. Or when she only agreed to talk to me once I admitted I'd been acting recklessly. No, or maybe we can talk about the months of therapy and medications, I had to take because she insisted something was wrong with me."

David shifted uncomfortably where he was standing and lowered his head. He knew of everything his wife did to Emma because of her past choices. Nothing he said could persuade Mary Margaret to give their daughter a chance to recover without being sent to boarding school. She insisted Emma needed discipline and structure, which wasn't being offered living on a college campus. David knew Emma resented him for the first couple months but after leaving hundreds of messages and voicemails, the young blonde came around and eventually, forgave her father.

"I'll be the first one to admit. She does not receive the prize for world's greatest mother but she has changed since the incident and I think Henry has helped."

Emma removed the bags that were lying on her bed and turned it down. She had a long day and did not care to discuss the topic, further. "I'll think about it. See you in the morning, Dad."

David smiled and turned to his daughter placing a kiss on her forehead. "Welcome home, sweetheart."

* * *

><p>Emma knew Ruby's hours for the café and decided to avoid an awkward breakfast with her parents to catch up with her best friend. Besides her father and Henry, Emma missed Ruby and it left a pain in her heart when she had to leave without saying goodbye. Walking at a medium pace, she greeted the faculty members who wished her a welcome back. Her mother concocted a lie, stating her daughter wanted a change in pace and decided boarding school on the east coast was her best option. Emma rolled her eyes, thinking about all the lies her mother probably told to keep her secret.<p>

She reached the café and inhaled the smell of fresh coffee and pastries. This used to be her favourite spot when she needed to escape from home and be alone. Ruby told her something about the café receiving some fancy award for world's best coffee, making the little café a popular tourist attraction and popular with students, even with high prices. Entering the café Emma felt a bit out of place, the café had an entire makeover with new furniture, booths with plush cushioning and the servers wearing either a black pants or skirt with a white shirt and tie. Emma scanned the place for Ruby and spotted the woman losing her tie about to end her shift. The blonde smiled and basically ran over to the tall, gorgeous brunette. Similar to last night, Emma body slammed into the waitress who fell over a bit but prevented herself from causing a scene in the restaurant.

Ruby was about to give a few choice words to the rude person but when she turned around the brunette almost started crying before she pulled Emma into a hug. "Emma! I thought you were one of these assess who attend this school." Ruby held Emma at a safe distance and held one of her hands.

"I missed you so much, kid. It's been three whole damn years." Ruby said over her shoulder as she led her best friend into a quieter place.

Emma only nodded. She had a lot of things to tell Ruby but she wanted them to sit down, first. "Missed you too, _wolfie._" The blonde smirked when the last words slipped from her lips.

"Wolfie? I can't believe you remembered that. It's been…what? Six or seven years since you called me that." The waitress pulled the blonde down into a booth barely occupied by anyone throughout the day.

The blonde dropped her head and blushed. "Yeah cause I hated that nickname."

"Which makes no sense! Cause you were the one who made it up. I never minded it. I though it was cute."

"Well, I'm not cute. If I were cute, my mom would not have sent me off to boarding school. I'm rebellious and dangerous." Emma laughed a little to prove she was joking.

"Oh, please. Your mother over reacted big time. One stupid, silly mistake and she ships you off the boarding school. I don't get it." Ruby knew Emma like the back of her hand. The mistake the blonde made was one that could possibly happen to anyone. Emma deserved a second chance or an explanation even before her parents sent her away,

"How I wish you were my mom." The blonde played with Ruby's fingers and continued to stare down.

"Who else will buy your liquor? Mothers are supposed to set an example."

"I know." Emma whispered, refusing to look the brunette in the eyes.

"Emma, come on. Don't be like that. You have a lot of time to start your relationship. Everything will be okay. I promise." Ruby took Emma's hand and interlocked their fingers. She gave the woman a reassuring squeeze.

"Okay. Okay, now is not the time to be gloomy. Shall we?" Emma saw as her friend's eyes twinkled with excitement. They were about to play their favorite game, 21 Questions something they've been playing since both girls hit puberty.

"Can I start?" Ruby started to bounce in her seat.

Emma nodded. "Sure."

"Alright. Any boyfriends?"

The blonde furrowed her eyebrows not fully understanding the question. "In the moment or did I have any?"

Ruby twitched her nose, giving it thought. "The latter."

"Oh. No. Hookups but no one I would call a boyfriend." Emma bit her bottom lip because there was so much she needed to tell Ruby.

"My turn. Are you still with Killian?"

Ruby's face turned a bright red. Killian had been her on and off boyfriend since high school. She loved him ever since she could remember but things never seemed to work out for too long. That or they could not stay away from each other. "We haven't been with each other for like four months. Which has been the longest."

"Oh, I'm sorry Rubs." Emma reached over and ran her fingers on Ruby's arm.

"It's truly fine. Did you ever contact Neal?"

"Once or twice. But he doesn't know I'm back though. And I'd like to keep it that way." Emma saw the look Ruby gave her and quickly interjected, "For now."

"I'll keep you to that, Swan."

"I know you will. Did you ever apply to college?" Emma knew Ruby thought she was not college material or even worthy of college but the blonde knew exactly how smart and talented the woman was.

"Yeah, actually. I applied to all of the UCs, well most of them." Ruby paused for a couple seconds and then continued. "I got into most of them. I'm taking classes at UCD mostly full time cause I can change my work schedule when needed."

"Dude! That's amazing. I knew you could do it. I'm so freaking proud of you." Emma smiled showcasing the pride she felt for her friend's success.

"Thanks, Em. I'm happy you are home; I only did it for you. Which I'm glad I did. Okay, next question. Is there anything new about you? Like something I may not know?"

Emma blushed softly. There were most definitely things she needed to tell her best friend. "Uh, yeah. A lot actually."

"Okay, start with the easiest one." Ruby wondered what could have possibly changed so much in Emma's life.

"I'm near fluent in Spanish. One summer I spent three or four months in Spain with a host family. I'm also minoring in the language."

"How cool is that! I didn't even know you knew Spanish." Ruby wanted to know more about Emma's life and experience over in the east.

The blonde chuckled, finding enjoyment in Ruby's excitement. "The classes I took at school were the only background I had. So I entered in Spanish Three Honors my junior year. And I spent that summer in Spain and ended up in Spanish Six my senior year."

"I'm happy about that. You bilingual bitch." Ruby laughed at her own joke. "Okay, give me one of the hardest ones."

Emma hesitated for a bit. She knew exactly which one she needed and wanted to tell Ruby but she lacked courage. "I'll just come right out and say it." She inhaled a long breath and spat everything out. "I like girls. I like guys too. But I like girls more. More like I love girls. I realized I was bisexual the last few months of senior year. And I've date a girl or two nothing serious."

Ruby remained quiet for what seemed like ages when the silence was interrupted with an outburst of laughter. "Oh, my dear gay child."

"What? Why'd you say that?" Emma's facial expressions completely changed to those of confusion.

"Emma. I'm your best friend of over twelve years. You really think I didn't know that. Come on. Give me more credit." Ruby chucked as if it was obvious.

"How did you know but I didn't?" Emma refused to believe Ruby knew she was queer before knowing herself.

"Cause I pick up on signs, dummy. When we were eight and playing house you thought there should be two mommies and not a mom and dad. If you gorgeous girl walks pass us, you can't help but comment on her. I just know."

"Huh, how long?"

"When you threw a tantrum before your thirteen birthday party because your mother wouldn't let you host a pool party. And your reasoning to me was the weather and stars were aligned for it." The brunette shook her head and laughed.

"What? I think that's perfectly good reason." Emma felt a soft blush creep on her cheeks.

"Your birthday is in October, kid. We live in California; anything below 70 is cold. "

"Whatever. I'll give that one to you, I guess." Emma smiled but after two seconds a fit of laughter came over her. She couldn't stop thinking about that tantrum. The blonde remembered it perfectly well because it had been the only one she ever threw in her life. Her poor father did not know what to do about it. And her mom continued to ignore her requests for a pool party. Ruby joined Emma in her fits of laughter, mostly because Emma's laugh is extremely contagious. They laughed for about two minutes when they heard a cough interrupt them. Both women mid-laugh saw a familiar but stern face staring down at them.

"Hi, Regina." Emma barely managed to get the two words out of her mouth.

"Hello." The woman responded without any emotion in her voice. Just ice cold.

"Uh, were we being loud? We promise to keep it down. Right, Ruby?" Emma turned to the waitress who simply nodded in agreement.

"That's not the reason I'm here. But thank you. The café is full and I'd like to sit down. Unfortunately, only this booth remains." The brunette eyed both women at the table, indicating they were the problems.

"Oh. We were wrapping things up, anyway. I'll leave the booth free for you." Emma scooted out of the booth and Ruby followed suit. They watched as Regina squeezed pass them, completely ignoring their presence or even saying thank you.

Ruby whispered 'rude', grab hold of Emma's hand and escorted her a couple feet way from the table. They were still within earshot of the booth but women figured Regina was not paying attention to them.

"I'll see you soon, right?" Ruby rubbed circles on the back of Emma's hand.

"I'm back for good, Rubs. No need to worry. I'll be on my best behavior." Emma gave Ruby a reassuring smile and squeezed her hand.

"You better. I need the other half of my yin-yang."

"I think we are both yin, though." Emma laughed at the memories they shared together.

"Don't ruin this. Call or text me soon. We still need to finish." Ruby rubbed a few tears away.

"Will do." Emma leaned in and pressed a kiss on Ruby's cheek. "Friends forever, wolfie."

This instantly cheered Ruby up and she repeated it back to Emma. "Friends forever."

Emma smiled and walked away but not before Ruby gave her a gentle love tap on her ass which earned a small yelp from Emma. The blonde turned around and stuck her tongue out at the waitress and she strutted out the restaurant feeling good about herself. Little did she know that a certain pair of chocolate colored eyes watched the entire farewell and now a bit intrigued by Emma.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: If only you guys knew how I came about to writing this chapter...over a course of a month and every day in English with 10-15 of free writing. Hope you like it and tell me what you think.**

Regina had walked back to her dorm, after spending the entirety of her day, nose buried in her Calc&Stats textbook while inhaling the intoxicating smell of coffee. She felt the energy slowly drain from her body but grateful she finally understood this one theorem. The brunette kicks her sneakers under her bed and lazily rolls into it. A wave of exhaustion floods over her and within minutes, she's lulled into a deep and tranquil sleep. Approximately forty minutes later, her slumber is interrupted by the sound of her ringtone. Regina groans and stretches her arm to her back pocket and sees it's from the Nolan Residence.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Regina groggily answers, "Regina, speaking."

"Regina! Glad, I reached you. Sorry if I woke you up but I have an important request of you. Can you babysit Henry tomorrow?"

Regina straightens up on the bed. "Tomorrow? Oh, I assumed…" She trails off, hoping Mary Margaret would understand her thoughts.

"That we wouldn't need you any more? Nonsense! Emma…She'll be home but I don't want to stick Henry on her when she's just come back." Mary Margaret leaves an awkward pause before her next thought. "So you'll do it?"

Regina perks up, feeling better, that as of now, she would not be left out of young Henry Nolan's life. "Yes, of course. What time do you need me?"

"Around six-thirty. We'll be back at twelve, the latest."

The brunette furrows her eyebrows, never knowing the Nolans to stay out so late, especially with classes the next day. "Sounds perfect. I'll see you then."

"Thank you. Bye, Regina."

"Bye, Mrs. Nolan," and with that note, Regina hangs up. She shifts herself and opens her laptop, checking her email and is slightly dismayed when nothing but her tutorees have emailed. As she's about to close her computer, Elizabeth barges through the door. The blonde peeks Regina's pout and plops next to her.

"No response, huh?"

Regina taps a manicured nail below the space bar and slowly nods. "It's been over a week now.

Elizabeth simply nods and reaches over to close the computer on Regina's lap. She inhales deeply before mumbling a coherent thought. "You're a million times better than this email. I know sometimes a wave of low self-esteem can hit the best of us, you included, but you can't let it get to you. Continue living your life, doll face."

That nickname causes Regina to scrunch her nose but responds with a sigh. "I hate to say you're right but…a lot is riding on this one response. Living in this…limbo is going to kill me."

"I know. I know. But think about all the other shit you got going on or even something you're excited for. Live your life, Regina. Don't stop it." She produces a small but pure smile for her best friend, which is returned with one of the same magnitude.

"Again…you're right." She chews on her lip, contemplating whether to disclose the information she's about to share. "I got a phone call today." She spits out as Elizabeth kicks her dirty, white, converse off.

"From whom? A booty call?" Elizabeth responds with a tone of mischief.

"No. From Mary Margaret."

"And? What'd she say, Mills? Does she want you to tutor her daughter? Oh, maybe you'll fall in love with her and finally get laid and release some of that tension in your neck."

Regina crosses her arms defiantly, as would a child. "Elizabeth, be serious, please. She wants me to babysit." This seems to catch Elizabeth's interests, so Regina continues. "She responded that, even though, Emma might be around she does not want to burden her with Henry." The blonde nods, encouraging Regina to continue. "Which I mean, makes sense, in a way but that's her little brother and Henry wants nothing more than to become her friend but…"

Her best friend quickly interrupts her. "But you want to continue being apart of his life, even if that means shutting out the one person, he needs right now."

Regina bashfully nods. "Am I a horrible person for feeling this way?"

"No, you're just an overprotective human being who loves with all her heart."

"I suppose."

Elizabeth reclines on the bed, now lying on her back, looking up at the ceiling. "Just…if Emma is there, don't entirely shut her out or prevent her from taking care of Henry. She is his sister."

Regina sighs dramatically. "Whatever."

Elizabeth chuckles and suddenly remembers, why she ran over to their room. "Guess what, love?"

The brunette quirks an eyebrow, "What? Slept with your psych professor?"

Elizabeth narrows her eyes and sticks out her tongue. "No! But the thought has been entertained before."

"What is it, Eliz?"

"Remember that red head you drooled over in Spanish class?"

Regina rolls her eyes but nods. "Yes. I don't recall drooling but yes.

Elizabeth chuckles. "Well, she's in my Psych 101 class and surprisingly enough, we got paired together for this big project."

Regina pretends not to be interested by stealing her computer back and opening a new tab. Elizabeth pays her no mind and continues. "Well, as we left class, she rushes up to me and confesses why we got paired. First, she asked the professor to, and I was beyond flattered but Little Miss Red bruised my ego, by stating, she wanted to get an in, well because… she had been crushing on you since Spanish. Obviously her clichéd plan was to become friends with me and then I'd talk her up to you."

The brunette interrupts at this moment. "Obviously. Why did you not stick with the plan?"

Elizabeth sighs exasperatedly. "Because what fun would that be? I mean, I know you already like her or, at least, like her physical appearance. So why bother with all the games?

Regina only shrugs her response. The blonde props herself up on her elbows and stares at Regina's profile. "So will you go on a date now that the other party is interested?"

Her roommate/best friend chews on her lip, weighing the pros and cons. "I don't know, Eliz. I have so much…"

Elizabeth instantly shoots up and grabs Regina by the shoulders. "Are you mad, woman? This hot chick thinks you're hot. Someone you've had a not-so-secret crush on since last year. And you are going to past the opportunity because you have too much stuff happening?" She shakes her head in disbelief.

Regina attempts to say something but is then again interrupted by her best friend. "Seriously, Regina? Seize the moment! Carpe Diem. All that bull crap. You're always locked away doing work or babysitting. For Christ's Sake, live a fucking little. Or you know, hit it and quite it." Elizabeth adds with a devilish smile.

The brunette sighs and starts to play with her hair. A defense mechanism, when she needed more time to think. "Elizabeth…this isn't my thing. I don't go out on dates. Or do one-night stands. Not after…"

Elizabeth nods understandingly and comforts Regina by rubbing her shoulder. "I know, love. But it's over ten months and well time to move on. You'll never know what you're missing out, if you keep hiding in fear."

Regina drops her head on the blonde's shoulder and thinks about this whole situation. "I guess…" She mumbles quietly to herself.

Elizabeth quirks an eyebrow and pokes Regina in her side. "Couldn't hear you."

Trying to escape from her torture, Regina repeats herself. "I guess."

Knowing this means, yes, Elizabeth continues to poke and tickle Regina to receive a proper answer. "You guess? I'm gonna need a decent answer."

The brunette screws her face in, no doubt, pain from her assaults. "Elizabeth! Yes, yes, I'll go on a date with your lab partner."

"Yay! Okay, I'll text her you said yes." Elizabeth claps her hands with excitement before she digs in her pocket for her phone. Regina witnesses her thumbs move at a rate of a million miles per hour and wonders, if she's actually making the right decision. Elizabeth, after what seemed like five minutes, locks her phone and smiles childishly at Regina. The brunette narrows her eyes and purses her lips, knowing her best friend is up to something again. Neither woman says anything, until Regina's ringtone starts blaring from under the sheets. It happened to be Regina's ringtone for unknown numbers and she quirks an eyebrow, wondering who could have possibly attained her number? Elizabeth nudges her, in the side, prompting her to pick up. Wary about this, she slowly presses the answer and puts it on speaker. "Regina Mills, speaking."

Immediately the other end responds. "Wow, you sound so professional, like one of my professors."

Elizabeth giggles and Regina smacks her arm. "I'm afraid, I don't know who this is."

Regina can hear the girl take a pause. "I'm sorry, Regina. This is Alex. Alex from Spanish class or Elizabeth's new partner, Alex."

The brunette's eyes grow wider and she mouths a few inappropriate words to Elizabeth. "Oh, Alex, I did not expect a phone call so soon."

"Really? Elizabeth texted me you number and said to call you as soon as possible."

Elizabeth attempts to stifle her laughs as Regina rubs her temple. "Seems our friend cannot stay out of other people's affairs."

The girl, on the other end, produces a half-genuine chuckle and leaves the line dead for a few seconds. "What did you call for, dear?" Regina sensed the girl's nervousness and attempted to soothe her with a calming and reassuring tone.

"Right…umm…it's different when you have to actually ask the person. But would you do me the honors and let me take you on a date?"

Regina's entire face turns red and she lowers her head to hide it, though Elizabeth already caught it and Alex cannot see her. "It would be my pleasure."

Elizabeth giggles with excitement, covering her mouth with her hand, not wanting Alex to overhear her. Regina rolls her eyes and touches her own cheeks to see if they were still heated…indeed they were. Over the phone, Alex releases the loudest exhale which is followed by a smile. "It means a lot to my ego that you said yes."

Regina smirks. "Hopefully, you impress my enough on our date, so that I can boost it even more."

Elizabeth and Alex's jaws drop and the redhead fumbles to think of a decent response. "T-the stakes are high, I see."

"Indeed they are, my dear."

Alex nervously chews on the inner of her cheek. "I should not be surprised. Quite frankly, I believe flying you out to Paris, for a candlelight dinner would not be enough for a lady of your grace and beauty."

Regina chuckles at the girl's chivalry and sweetness. "If you were to do that, Alex, you'd have to book a room for us."

"A room?"

"Yes, love, a room. So I may fully express my gratitude for such a lovely, yet clichéd date."

Elizabeth, herself, starts to blush and shakes her head at Regina's lack of boundaries. Alex, however, does not seem fazed by this and quickly responds. "Paris maybe the city of lovers, Regina, but I don't strip until the third date."

Regina faintly smiles and Elizabeth groans loudly, in pain. "That's enough before the talk goes from PG-13 to NR." Alex audibly chokes when she hears Elizabeth's voice over the phone. She interprets Regina and Elizabeth having a faint quarrel and then the audio becomes muffled. Less than a minute passes before the redhead hears, "Get off me!" and a heavy pant close to her ears.

"Sorry about that, Alex. Elizabeth is basically my sister I never wanted." Regina says between breaths.

"I completely understand. I have five sisters."

"Shall we talk later? I still need to get this whale off of me." From the other end, Alex manages to hear Elizabeth squeal, "Hey!" and possibly smack Regina's leg.

"I'd like that. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you sound like how you might, after the stay in Paris."

Regina bites her lip and smirks. "Only if you do your job right." Alex blushes, once more, and bides a farewell to Regina before closing the line. Regina chuckles knowing she won the upper hand on their first conversation, she locks her phone and settles with a sigh. After Elizabeth and Regina's battle, the blonde ended up on stop of Regina, straddling her back. The brunette, at the moment, does not attempt to overthrow Elizabeth and crosses her arms in front of her, creating a makeshift pillow. Elizabeth gently nudges her in the back and Regina groans her response. Elizabeth rolls her eyes and again nudges Regina with more force than first. The woman underneath her does not bother to respond and pretends to be sleeping.

Elizabeth annoyingly whines and pokes Regina. "Stop ignoring me!"

Her arms hide Regina's smile. "I'm not ignoring you."

"Yes, you are. You were pretending to be asleep and won't talk to me about your little conversation."

"That does not equivocate to me ignoring you. And I'm a private person. Can't a woman have her secrets?" She smirks, knowing what Elizabeth's response might be.

Elizabeth loudly scoffs. "A woman can, yes. You cannot. Anyway, your conversation was on speaker for the entire time. Even when things started getting sexual."

"Things were not getting sexual. You're always misinterpreting things. We were having a friendly conversation and talking about our date."

"Regina Mills…I am not in the mood to argue with you. You…intelligent, cunning, beautiful woman." Elizabeth crosses her arms as she breathes out her sentence.

Regina giggles at Elizabeth's attempts at staying mad at her. "Why thank you, Elizabeth. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you wanted to take me out on a date."

"Shut up." Elizabeth responds while nudging Regina's back. She releases a small yawn. "If I get off of you…will you cuddle with me?"

Regina rolls her eyes but nods. "Yes. I will cuddle with my twenty year old best friend." Her response laced with a hint of sassiness.

Elizabeth giggles and quickly removes herself from Regina's back. The brunette lets out a moan of comfort and rolls on her back, stretching her legs and arms. "You are a lot heavier than you look."

Her best friend doesn't bother to respond but sticks her tongue out. She lies next to Regina, gently resting her head on the woman's chest and throws an arm over her torso. Regina softly smiles and sets a hand on Elizabeth's back and proceeds to draw soft circles over it, knowing this tended to calm her and easily put her to sleep.

Elizabeth lowly purrs and pulls herself closer to Regina comfort while tightening her arm around the brunette. "Regina?"

"Yes?"

"Don't give up on love. Okay? I know it's easy to overwhelm yourself and make excuses about not having time. But you're an extremely special person and someone should be lucky enough to experience all the love you can give and you need to be treated like a fucking queen. You basically act like one."

Regina chuckles at Elizabeth's last statement but thinks seriously about what she just said. Love is a tricky thing. Relationships go two ways, either you marry them or break up. She never liked those odds because Regina loves love. And she can't imagine giving herself completely over to one person and then maybe a week, month, or year later, that love is gone. The young woman had avoided love for quite some time, she did meet someone, and they did quickly hit it off but Regina could not commit. She cared for the person but such a time of her life, the brunette believed it only to be lust, not love. She believed it to be the right person but the wrong timing. Currently, Regina regrets her decision and wished she could have taken it back and in their arms but as her father says, "Hija, no te preocupes. Todo pasan por una razón."

She faintly smiles and kisses Elizabeth's forehead, responding with the simplest answer, "Okay."


End file.
